Under Promise, Over Deliver | Glossary

Definition

‘Under Promise, Over Deliver’ is an oft-debated, much discussed term in the Digital Product delivery business. It is something that in theory, drastically improves communication channels within the business and commitment towards the deliverables on a road-map. Ideally, the best scenario for everyone is to estimate accurately the scope of work and then deliver it. In reality though, this is almost impossible in a rapidly dynamic and changing business environment.

So the philosophy of ‘Under Promise and Over Deliver’ becomes a valid alternative. It offers the opportunity for the Team to set reasonable expectations regarding delivery, and in turn focus on improving their quality overall. It’s been debated so much, because of a school of thought that states that this method may lead to lower output overall.

Further Reading

  •  “Scrum : the art of doing twice the work in half the time” (book), by Jeff Sutherland.

Spike | Glossary

Definition

‘Spikes’ or ‘Research Spikes’ are alternative refactoring paths.  A Spike is an investment from the Product Owner that is intended to figure out the nature of the product being built, and the ways in which the team is going to build it, in advance of actually doing so. The Product Owner initiates the process of allocating partially the team’s capacity ahead of when the story is to be delivered. This helps the team gain advance knowledge of what to do before the story comes into the sprint.

A ‘Spike’ therefore, is an investment to make the story estimable and schedule-able. It is a beneficial technique, in the cases when the story is too large and complicated. Also in instances when the term is unsure whether they’ll be able to complete the story and eliminate blockers.

Further Reading

  •  “User Stories Applied”(book), by Mike Cohn